Sharp Electronics Corporation’s Energy Systems and Services Group (Sharp ESSG) announced that its SmartStorage behind-the-meter energy storage solution has been selected by NW Photon Energy and Paradise Village Retirement Community, a senior Independent Assisted and Memory Care Community in San Diego, California. A 240 kW/324 kWh SmartStorage system will be installed in six buildings on the community’s grounds and integrated with 516 kW of solar PV. A detailed analysis of Paradise Village’s energy usage revealed that the hybrid solar plus SmartStorage system is expected to yield an estimated $90,000 in demand savings annually. Additionally, when factoring in the solar PV system coupled with the SmartStorage system, Paradise Village can expect to save over $250,000 a year on its utility bills (this includes both energy and demand savings).

“The significant savings unlocked by addressing peak demand may have a positive impact on the quality of life for the seniors in Paradise Village’s care, so we’re very proud to be involved in this project,” said Carl Mansfield, General Manager and Founder of Sharp’s U.S. based Energy Systems and Services Group. “In addition to this retirement home, we’ve now had SmartStorage systems installed at a wide variety of facilities such as lumber yards, non-profits, service stations, school campuses, manufacturing plants, and more. This demonstrates how economically impactful our energy storage system can be for virtually any commercial and industrial building that is struggling with high utility bills that are punctuated by expensive demand charges.”

Paradise Village is a resort-style Independent, Assisted Living and Memory Care Community located in San Diego Gas & Electric’s (SDG&E) utility territory. The multi-building community consumes a significant amount of energy from HVAC, refrigeration and a variety of medical equipment that can have a significant startup load, which in turn increases demand request peaks with SDG&E. In some parts of California, up to 50 percent of commercial utility customers’ bills are a result of demand charges, making them ideal candidates for solar plus SmartStorage systems. It is estimated that Paradise Village’s system will reduce demand by over 2,000 kW annually.

Paradise Village’s SmartStorage system installation is backed by Sharp’s innovative 10-year Asset Management Service Agreement, which provides routine and unscheduled maintenance coupled with a 10-year demand reduction performance guarantee. If guaranteed demand reductions are not met within the terms of the agreement, Sharp will compensate for the deficit in promised peak demand reductions.